Net writedowns on bad loans reached 1.3 billion euros in the first nine months of the year, up 56 percent from a year earlier, including 461 million euros in the third quarter results.

*UNICREDIT

The bank's Chief Executive Federico Ghizzoni said on Wednesday he could not rule out spinning off the bank's Italian operations but the issue was not on the agenda and no investor had asked for it.

Speculation about a possible spin-off has been swirling since the bank's Chairman Giuseppe Vita said last month he would favour such a move.

"It's an option that I do not want to rule out a priori," Ghizzoni was quoted as saying in an interview with Italian daily Il Sole 24 Ore a day after the bank delivered better-than-expected third-quarter results.

*SARAS

One of Italy's leading oil refiners said on Wednesday its core earnings in the third quarter rose more than six times, boosted by higher refining margins and no maintenance.

In a statement Saras said its comparable earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was 145 million euros ($184.31 million), compared to a consensus provided by the company of 134 million euros.

*UBI

Italy's No.5 bank by assets said its net profit rose 22 percent in the first nine months of the year thanks to strong trading gains.

The lender said net profit came in at 223 million euros, compared with 182.7 million euros. Core Tier 1 ratio, a key measure of financial strength, rose to 9.35 percent compared with 9.2 percent at the end of June taking into account stricter requirements by the European Banking Authority.

ENEL Italy's biggest utility Enel confirmed its full-year guidance on Tuesday after its core earnings in the first nine months fell 3.9 percent due to a weak domestic power business and the absence of one-off items.

Enel, which owns 92 percent of Spanish utility Endesa , is faced with falling power prices due to weak demand and increasing competition from solar power generation in its home market.

TELECOM ITALIA

The phone operator is looking at Vivendi's Brazilian telecoms company GVT, along with other opportunities, its said on Tuesday, one day after a foreign investor proposed injecting fresh cash into Italy's largest telecoms operator.

"GVT is a fixed-line operator and in Brazil we already have the second-biggest mobile operator there, so it is certainly something to look at, just as we are looking at many other things," CEO Marco Patuano told reporters in Rome.

TOD'S, FERRAGAMO

Leather shoemaker Tod's reported on Tuesday a 14 percent sales decline in its core Italian market in the nine months to the end of September, missing analysts' forecasts.

The owner of Tod's, Hogan, Fay and Roger Vivier brands said global sales grew 7.3 percent to 749.9 million euros ($953 million) over the nine-month period.